Ari

Diplomacy roll to convince the Romans not to go after the dinos: 14. Rerolling(-1HP at next combat): 11. +10 from rolling less than 11, so 21. That works.

GM It didn't take long for Subito to catch the sound of a thousand Romans marching through the jungle, and after only about twenty minutes of searching he quickly discovered the legion's impromptu campsite several miles from Nova Celio's villages. Contact between them was pretty quickly established, helped by Subito already knowing how to speak and understand Latin, though his accent and pronunciation was much more low-class than the soldiers expected from a messenger. The Legate was skeptical of Heraldo's message, especially of the idea that the Incans she had been chasing after weren't actually real, the dinosaurs were and the soldiers had been wasting their time. <"If those monsters are flesh and blood,"> the burly woman snapped as she thrust a powerful arm in the direction of the procession of lizards <"then they're the real danger! We have to mobilize and destroy them before they kill anyone!"> <"They'll be taken care of soon, Legatus Adrasteia"> Heraldo assured her, folding his arms neatly behind his back <"But there's no need for you or your comrades to go and fight those Serpent slaves, you need to strengthen the city and keep it safe. I and my comrades are more than enough for them anyhow. No weapon in this world can hurt me! And Tsunami's watery power and grace, Myrmidon's sublime soldierhood and Blodeuwedd's skill can easily lay a perfect trap for those things!"> he added with a confident grin on his dark face. It withered under the woman's cold stare, but he held her gaze steadily and never shifted. At last she nodded slowly <"Very well. We'll do as you ask, but only to garrison the city. If we're attacked, we won't hang back and let them maraud the villages. Good day, Herald"> with that and a jangle of armor she went out to mobilize the troops, the legion quickly dismantling the camp and proceeding at a quick pace back for the city... The Serpent Man was many things, but obviously he wasn't good at keeping his imagination in check. Paling at the threat he snarled "I-we wisssh to remake the world in our own image! Onccce again we shall crush the citiesss, lay low the junglesss, set the beassstsss againssst your people!" curling into a monstrous bundle on the floor it edged away from the agent and the three standing just behind her. Kazra lunged forward, furious again "Why?! What did we do you to deserve that?" she glared down at it, and the reptile looked up at her. "Yig...whissspersss to usss, offersss usss an empire to rule again. Thisss world isss oursss. The dwelling of Sssaturn...we leave messsagesss in it, the priessstsss follow usss, will ssspread chaosss before we ssstrike..." "The Scepter is ours!" it cried in a much more human voice, glaring defiance, rising on one lean and scaly arm "Asss long asss the Master holdss it, we sshall not lose the army, and all sshall be crushed! He ruless the other throne already," it grinned hideously "The Sun-Worsshipers shall fall first!" Kazra unlimbered the spear from her back in a fluid motion, aiming it straight for the lizard's skull.

Will Save for Mr. Goldhead Serpent: 21. Shaken! He will answer some questions, awesome.

GM "Hardly mighty, O artist, all my race can command yours!" Parsinkle replied as he darted towards one of the closer rebels, swinging his arming sword at the creature, only for them to dive aside at just the right moment for the elegant blade to scrape and spark beautifully across the floor! A brief glimpse of her face as she sprang into the press of warring bodies revealed her to be Twinetingle from the kitchens! Recovering with a snarl of anger the Prince added as he backpedaled "At any rate, you accepted my hospitality, my food, my gifts and my aid. That first is what I trade for your unwavering fealty! For all the good it does.." he grumbled sourly, watching as several of his nobles were torn apart under the onslaught of rebel weapons, flung bleeding and cursing onto the floor as they were trampled under the fray! The battle was obviously going against the Prince and his creatures from the outset, and Hartfoul had mysteriously disappeared... "Don't judge us too quickly, Parsinkle" Marceau called out languidly as he flung a flashbang card at the face of one of the Fey in sackcloth, grinning as she slammed her foot onto it, muffling the bang and obliterating the flash. "You may be onto something, actually" he commented, the caped and cowled man crouching a little, clenching his hands and getting ready to leap into the fray!

"Commendable speed" Was all the triton said when Silver Spider returned with her specialized suit. He had barely moved a muscle during her absence, staring at the pile of Deep Ones and carrying on an idle conversation with Temperance about water spirits and modern schooling. Turning on his heel he marched to the edge of the water, sniffed the air, bared his teeth and leaped off into the South River with a titanic splash and flash of light as his legs joined together and formed the dragon's tail, his weight and impetus carrying him far below the surface where the sun was weak. Shooting back up with another gout of water he called "Follow close! Many down in the depths are no friends of yours, and have no fear of me." with that he turned and roiled back under the surface, shooting off at an easy pace for the humans to match. It was smooth sailing as the three swam through the Centery Narrows and out the Great Bay, Wave-Eye taking a moment as they passed under a fishing boat to breath in the cleaner waters with deep relish...and fought back a pang of nostalgia as he recalled what was now gone. 'It will never be so clear again...' Snapping his jaws with a *clack* that echoed through the water he announced "Drowned Atlantis lies to the east, and down" he gestured vaguely ahead at the oppressive Atlantic gloom. "They have transports, but we will attract less notice if we go around them and the city's outposts. This way." in a moment he had shot ahead, tail lashing from side to side and propelling him off for the distant sunken metropolis, for fabled Atlantis!

GM Despite the mighty punch aimed at its head, the artifizoid raised an arm at precisely the right moment to deflect it over its shoulder. It was impossible, but it actually seemed to look smug. Still racing along the catwalk, not bothering with the more skillful maneuvers Kat and Serge were doing, Morsa put the gun to his shoulder again, aimed down the rudimentary sights, and squeezed the wires together. He made sure to plant himself more securely than last time as the stream of power roared out of the detached cannon, the young soldier letting out a gleeful "YooooZA!" as the shot blasted a hole through his artificial target, sending it toppling over the railing into the vat below! "Almost there, comrades!" he shouted over the din, the blue Lor almost vibrating with excitement.

Tagging this for spaceness!

GM With a short bob that could have been a bow the bird gently lifted off and glided to the ground a few feet away. Glancing around it clicked its beak in satisfaction, turning gravely to face the two Claremonters. Then the change began, its body shifting, expanding and twisting impossibly before their eyes. In the span of a few seconds the squat golden eagle had exploded into a handsome, tanned young man about Koshiro's age wearing a russet velvet suit, elegant buckled leather shoes and a beaming smile, an eagle-headed cane tucked under one arm with eyes that glowed faintly. Walking forward he shook both their hands warmly, literally in Kimber's case, his hand solid and thrumming to her touch. As he pumped their hands briskly, he said with a grin "Hello! I'm Phoebus of the 12th Circle, right hand and general errand boy of Mrs. Spannerman, and quite pleased to make your acquaintances!" Jumping backwards to land on a pile of broken soccer nets with uncanny weightlessness, he tossed the cane aside and began with a slightly more sober expression "Now then! You want assurance this isn't some kind of trap? Entirely sensible!" Leaning forward he went on crisply "First off, that fight at the Columbus Day parade made clear to everyone who saw it that you two have powerful friends, and that any attack against you would bring them down on the poor fool like a sack a' bricks, not to mention that any attempt would have to contend with your own exceptional abilities. I'm not sure if you know this, but people of your strength are rare in the magical world, meaning a trap would have to be sprung somewhere you can't have told anyone you'd be, and the Greensward is a rather public place. Second, if I was a supervillain I'd probably come up with something more immediately attractive, like an offer to come with me so I can get you a new body and keep your powers, Ms. Ghost Girl" he offered, wincing a little as he added "Er...which isn't something I would say anyway. Seeing as it's kind of a gigantic lie. I wouldn't say "Hey, come to a magic party at this random place so you can meet new people!", that just arouses logical suspicions and questions a lie would be hard to answer" Hopping down lightly from the nets he continued, watching their faces with care "Third, if we were interested in trying to trick or hurt you, Mrs. Spannerman wouldn't go and tell you her real name right in a letter. She'd give her Light name or use an alias." Tossing a football a few feet into the air with one foot, he bounced it off his knee with great care "Fourth, the Arches are a little outside of the terrestrial sphere, just touching the astral plane. Anyone tries anything funny there, and Eldrich can put a stop to them without missing a beat." Phoebus abruptly kicked the ball into the mass of netting behind him with a thud "I've been to these parties before, I know the people, I have enough power to be useful if something does go down, you can rely on me!" he declared with a much less flippant smile "You can stay as long(or short!) as you like, and be back without missing more than an hour of real time!".

That sounds good to me! What do the other contenders think?

"Mmphm!" Subito fell back against the couch, blinking in surprise as Cerys kissed him. The shock didn't last long though, and her teasing smile got a bashful one in return as her boyfriend gently leaned forward and reciprocated the kiss. He very suddenly realized where this was most likely going and struggled with a powerful gut feeling that this wasn't right, that he ought to tell her he wasn't nearly ready...and the fact that kissing her while they were cuddled on the couch was very, very nice. "I love your plans, Blodeu" he murmured in the agent's ear. Lying down and letting her fall on top of him, he he gently massaged her back... ...only for his hand to pause abruptly on her thigh "Cerys" he whispered in her ear "I'm not ready. An' this is the first date, we shouldn't do this, not just yet." he softly maneuvered until they were still lying close on the couch, but not quite makeout-close. "Besides, we've got that thing tomorrow, the demonstration in Bayview Mr. Summers wants us to keep watch on. Don't think he'll be happy if we don't get enough sleep and are too sore to do hero stuff" he smiled lasviciously at the word 'sore' and kissed her slowly on the lips "We can still share that bed if you want..."

Right. I was a fool and forgot when it was convenient. Only one Standard or Move Action, so Heraldo will Move over to the battle site, just out of range of the Giant Snake. EDIT: Nah, right next to.

The Geased must act as follows: they have to follow any order given, but can perform that order however the victim wants. Currently the Geas is "fight on my behalf against the rebelling Fey."

GM With a squawk the golden eagle shook its head at the ghost's question, looking crestfallen. Keeping a fierce yellow eye on the young manticore the bird folded its wings and hopped a few steps closer to the students. Looking up at them for a moment it suddenly bent down and in the blink of an eye swept a dusty wing against the loose gravel, the rocks quickly re-arranging themselves into the words 'TOO OPEN'. Indeed, the breezy open lawn was pretty difficult to hide in, even without their classmates wandering the campus in knots and chatting about their plans for the coming week. Catching Koshiro's eye it gestured meaningfully around the busy lawn, especially to a nearby group of students coming jogging down the path, and giving a very interested glance at the dorms. Smiling as best as a bird could, it closed its cold eyes and went from solid to almost wholly transparent. A stamp of its mighty claw and the rocks clicked as they rolled across the ground to form 'INCONSPICUOUS'. After a moment's thought with its head to one side it added. 'BIRD CAN'T TALK' Hopping excitedly up and down and from claw to claw, the eagle beat its huge wings enough to give it lift, and shot up to land on Koshiro's shoulder in a riot of brown and white feathers! The huge bird rested as lightly as nothing on the boy, and leaned slightly away to give his head some space. This close it smelled oddly of cinnamon and something else rich and earthy.

"Sure bro. Sure." Prowling around the table, Subito took up position, eyes narrowed in the glaring lamp hanging from the ceiling to fit the mood. Tapping his cue against the white ball he bent down, squinted, drew back and hesitated. Moving just a fraction of an inch to the left he bent down again, a confident grin on his face "One for the money." *tap*' He crouched just an inch lower "two for the show..." *tap* He drew back slowly. "...three to figure out what I'm doing..." *tap* He angled the rod a bit to the right. "And here I go!" *crack!* The black 8 rocketed into the pocket, slamming against the plastic back...and bouncing clean off to roll back to the center of the table. Staring at the black and white ball for a moment he said "Well darn. Your move Surge!" nodding to Serge and stepping back once more to watch.

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Move Action to Fly up to their mutual foe. Attacking the Giant Snake with Strike, Power Attack(-3 Attack, +3 Damage): 26. Critical hit! DC29 TOU save, +5 makes it DC34! EDIT: No, Staggered so he can't do both. Just Moving.

Round 1, the Order is: Parsinkle: Unharmed-GM King of Suits: Unharmed, Geased, 4HP Rebels(x17): Unharmed-GM Loyalists(x15): Unharmed-GM Rene de Saens: Unharmed, Geased, 4HP Rebels are at the edges of the room, Loyalists in the center. Parsinkle moves over and attacks one of the Rebels: 13. Misses! The Geased can only do as commanded, but are free in carrying out their orders. King of Suits throws a Dazzle card at one of the Rebels, Accurate Attack(+5 Attack, -5 Damage): 36. DC19 Reflex save: 17. Failed. DC19 Fortitude save: 20. Success. Rebel Fey attack the Loyalists: 11 hits. 11 Loyalists make their DC21 TOU save: All but 3 fail. 8 Loyalists down. Not killed because you can't die in Avalon, but they aren't very happy. The 7 Loyalists make their attack: 3 hits. The three hit Rebels make their DC21 TOU saves: All make it. Rene is up!

DC10+7(power rank), so the Concentration check failed. Net Fly is Dazed and Bruised.

A handful paused halfway to his mouth, the man wide-eyed in amazement. "Well-you make a good point. I have been in this ultra-modern metropolis for far too long when you can correct me on that. No offense meant, Philos," he added with an apologetic look "I mean that I've done a great deal of traveling, seen all sorts of towns and ought to have considered that. There are towns in the Balkans that look like that, in Spain I-" Marceau turned back to the screen just in time to scowl darkly "Bah, soldiers! Met more than a few like those worthies. With any luck..aha! Wonderful!" he burst out laughing as the pair made their swift exit, leaning back in his seat and grinning contentedly "Ah, always nice to have a rescuer with magic and such a fine voice, don't you agree Philos?" he asked cheekily. Watching the two dodging through the streets he went on "Yes, people enjoy seeing stories like ones they've seen before. And I've met some lovely people who thought themselves dreadful to look at. Making her detailed enough to be simply plain might have been just not worth it to the company. Young, smooth faces work so well after all. Her voice though, you think it's a little dull perhaps?"

"Your culinary taste and iron stomach continues to terrify me Philos." Marceau replied with a look askance at the popcorn tub. He had politely refused his comrade's offers to share, instead taking a small water to keep him company. Taking a sip he edged several feet closer, the ticket booth fast approaching "As for foreign...for eons we thought people from other lands were wholly alien. A century or so of globalization isn't enough to erase it, it will take a while longer. But someday soon, my friend, we shall be united in peace!" the Frenchman declared with perfect confidence, smiling happily despite the odd looks several of the other theatregoers were darting them. He nodded at the poster again, beaming "This movie is special, because it is animated." making extremely descriptive motions with his hands he went on excitedly "Art was drawn, and redrawn over and over and over countless times so that when all of them were played in sequence, fluid motion is achieved!" Marceau nestled deeper into his coveralls, eyes twinkling "It is unlike anything else." "Tickets please" came the crisp voice of the red-uniformed woman behind the counter, who surveyed the two impressively lean men with a worriedly raised eyebrow. "Here you are!" handing over his tickets without hesitation, Marceau led the way to the door marked with the name of their featured presentation, Howl's Moving Castle... Five Minutes Later... "It is even better than I remember," the young vigilante commented, struggling to be heard over the conversations from the other patrons, taking another handful of Philos' popcorn and chewing it distractedly. Watching the on-screen parade through the streets he added dismally with his mouth full "Reminds me of pictures from the start of the First World War. Eager young men going off to fight in brilliant uniforms, horses trotting, flags streaming, confetti falling, people cheering. They had no idea what was about to happen..." he shuddered. Glancing over and recovering his smile he added "What do you think my friend? That castle is a sight worth seeing eh? This city's style is just a century old, and already it looks like something from another world!"

Heraldo made sure to land just out of sight of the front door, just in case. He took a moment to relax against her, to feel her warmth and smooth muscles just for a second longer... Dispelling the costume with a wave of his hand Subito raised an eyebrow and smiled at his girlfriend's offer "Why Ms. Pfer, it's so late and we've already gone dancing," he said in a mock-shy voice "whatever else could you want me to have energy for tonight?" he kept up the bashful look for about ten seconds before laughing heartily and linking arms with her "I'll come up Cerys, but let's make sure we don't go too far..whoop!" he stumbled a little on the snowy cement and smiled awkwardly up the girl "Hi Blodeu. I'm kinda dizzy from all that wine, so don't let me fall, 'kay? Part of the reason I offered to fly us here, nothin' to hit!" Walking inside he kept an arm around her shoulders, drowsy and cozy enough that he barely noticed when his hand slowly settled down onto her hip as they rode up the elevator. Glancing around the living room as they walked through her door the muscular boy whistled. "Huh! I hope your'n Tona's room at Claremont isn't like this. Should get your pals over more often, liven it up!" Tossing his coat and dress shirt onto the handy chair Subito took a look around, increasingly struck by how sparse the apartment was. There wasn't much to distract him from their talk at the Chez, and soon her boyfriend's mind was busily considering the vitally important question of what the next step was. Sitting on the couch beside her the Hispanic teen said "So...um..." he took a deep breath to try and control his heartbeat, which being alone and nervous with Blodeuwedd wasn't helping "What would you like to do?"

Many thanks to you all. It was a very happy birthday.

GM Its feathers ruffled up at Avro's approach, but aside from a cold sideways glare the golden eagle never shifted. Having to spread its wings out to keep from toppling over would have made that seriously dangerous anyway. Kimber's attentions revealed that there wasn't anything wrong with the dusty bird a little rest couldn't fix. It was winded from the fall and obviously unsteady, but it wasn't hurt. Proudly raising its fearsome yellow beak, the animal croaked and shook the bound talon vigorously up and down to loosen its cargo, which Kimber easily retrieved. The letter was bound quite neatly and opened to reveal a thin, spidery message: Ghost GIrl & Papercut, Your illustrious selves are invited to a gathering of young adult mages at the Arches of Abbridon, better known as the Greensward Mansion in eastern Bayview. Directions are on the reverse side. We have heard tales about your exploits which have warmed the hearts of Freedom's magical community for years, and it is to our shame we have never before extended the hand of comradeship to you. At this gathering, neophyte magi such as yourselves will have the chance to enjoy yourselves with abandon, meet young mages from all over the world, a chance to make friends with those you might otherwise never meet, and discoveries that would otherwise remain in secret. Parties such as these are wonderful opportunities to expand one's horizons. Drinks served are not usually alcoholic, but the need for a hands-off attitude to such gatherings makes this slightly tricky to ensure. Careful shielding and wards will prevent any incursions or attacks from interrupting the fun. Doubtless you will have a multitude of questions that I(who am not a master of divination) cannot foresee well enough to fully answer in this letter, if you desire more information please take the messenger to a secluded place and ask whatever you need to know. Hoping for your gracious indulgence, and to see you shortly, Mrs. Grace Spannerman. PS: Make sure there is plenty of room if you want to ask the messenger something. He is energetic. The eagle was calmly smoothing its feathers down while the pair read the letter, and looking rather proud of itself.

DC22 TOU save: 12. Failed, destroyed. 5 left. They make their shots(4-5 attack Warp, 6-7 attack Morsa and 8 attacks Net Fly): -4 to 4-5 and 8, so only Net Fly gets hit. DC23 TOU save for Net Fly. We'll let the in-character thread catch up.

Subito maintained his own smile as best he could, despite the same feeling of being in over his head going through him. "Well at least one of us knows what they're doing." he said blandly, with a wink. Turning to look slowly around the room he frowned very slightly. What exactly could you steal with a room? And more to the point...how would you do that? His eyes rested on Cerys 'Wouldn't impress Lockwood if she just had some dudes burst in and steal stuff. And lurin' us here to capture him again? No way she'd do that twice...' Suddenly it struck him that everything the thief wanted was in the room, and she had an airship. And airships could carry lots of stuff. 'Not bad Herald, now stop staring at the agent and start talking Gah! I-I didn't- Less apologies, more suggestions' Hurriedly raising his head, Subito murmured "Hey, uh, Blodeu? What if she's just aimin' to snag everythin' with her airship? Preeeetty sure nobody'd expect that." He rolled his hazel eyes "An' it's flamboyant enough to suit her perfectly. Only problem is I'd pro'lly hear it by now...or it could be she's gonna use the diamond to run a current thingy to transfer stuff through the Ether, or somethin' else equally crazy that I have no idea 'bout.." He sighed irritably, running a hand through his hair and glancing shyly at Vapeur like he had before.